


on the concept of wanting

by setosdarkness



Series: OTP Collection - IwaOi [8]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Dorks in Love, F/M, fem!iwa-chan, iwa-chan likes wearing loose clothes like oikawa's jersey and it's torture, jealous!oikawa because iwa-chan is godsend and everyone knows it, manager!iwa-chan, oikawa's an idiot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-12
Updated: 2014-10-12
Packaged: 2018-02-20 22:56:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,014
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2446187
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/setosdarkness/pseuds/setosdarkness
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>All he wanted was for Iwa-chan to be all cute and adorable giving him shoulder massages and cheering for him, is that too much to ask??</p><p>(Or: the one where Oikawa oh-so-kindly asks/harasses Iwa-chan to be their manager)</p>
            </blockquote>





	on the concept of wanting

**Author's Note:**

> so, I saw this prompt during one of the many, many, many times browsing the iwaoi tags in tumblr, but for the life of me, can't remember who the lovely prompt is from;;; in any case, this was all inspired by the fem!iwaizumi being a manager!!! Also, I haven't written anything het in an extremely long time, so I probably messed this up orz I also rushed near the end because I wanted to post this asap ahahaha. Expect more HQ fics from me (esp of the IwaOi variety) in the near future, because Karasuno VS Seijou is up and I'll need to distract myself from my tears from Seijou's inevitable defeat orz (I would give anything just to see Oikawa and Iwaizumi victorious against Ushiwaka, why must you always crush my dreams, Furudate-sensei ;__;)

  
•••  
  
Contrary to what people (re: Iwa-chan and his mother) say, Oikawa Tooru isn't a person with many wants.   
  
Sure, he wants to get a perfect score on his next algebra test so he can apply to be a tutor and annoy the fuck out of poor Iwa-chan who got a 65 on their last quiz. Sure, he also wants to complete his Alienwarez collection, but only because Iwa-chan had commented that he can't do it, so he must, because Iwa-chan was clearly looking down on his patience in collecting stubs. Sure, he also wants to pummel a volleyball right into Ushiwaka-chan's face to wipe off the other's condescending smirk, then get a high-five from Iwa-chan for his efforts.  
  
…Okay, so he might have a lot of wants, but they're not really that important? Like, it will be great if he can get them, but he can live out those anyway?  
  
But then, there's one thing that maybe exceeds his usual levels of 'want'.   
  
He has been friends with Iwa-chan ever since they were young kids who attended the same nursery school. He has successfully infected Iwa-chan with his love for volleyball – so they have been on different clubs since elementary and middle school. Now though that they're on Aobajousai and it unfortunately doesn't have a girls' volleyball team…  
  
He really, really, really wants Iwa-chan to be their manager.  
  
He wants Iwa-chan to be there for him, cheering him on each time he gets a service ace, handing him a towel and his water bottle during time-outs, discussing the best strategy in-between sets, making a heavy-protein bento for him to offset his love for sweets, riding beside him on the bus on their way to their summer training camp and—  
  
Well.  
  
He wants a lot of things when it comes to Iwa-chan.  
  
Let's just leave it at that.  
  
•••  
  
"Iwa-chan—"  
  
"No."  
  
"I haven't even said anything!"  
  
"I know you're about to say something stupid."  
  
"You can't just know that!"  
  
"I do." There's a smile playing on Iwa-chan's face and it's unfair how gentle she looks when Oikawa has lots of first-hand experience claiming otherwise. "You have that weird furrow on your brow when you're thinking too hard and that's always a sign that you're about to be stupid—stupider than usual."  
  
"So mean!!!" Oikawa whines but he's not-so-secretly happy because Iwa-chan is the best. Who else can read him so easily like this?  
  
Iwa-chan tucks a stray lock of hair behind her ear, her hair the longest he ever remembers seeing it. He's very happy that Iwa-chan actually listened to his suggestion to let her hair grow out – well, there was a lot of whining, coercing and blackmailing involved – at one point, he even had to rope in both their mothers, but Iwa-chan listened in the end, so that's a victory on his count. Anyway, Iwa-chan continues scribbling answers to their algebra worksheet because she's a hard-worker who will not accept that measly 65 lying down. Oikawa works hard too, when he feels like it and when he feels that the reward will outweigh his effort, but right now, he's more interested in watching the neat lines of Iwa-chan's handwriting filling up the papers in front of her.  
  
Oikawa hums as he doodles on the upper corner of his own spreadsheet. He keeps his left cheek pressed against his palm, glancing at Iwa-chan every now and then.   
  
He feels calm and restless at the same time, though he takes great care in not swinging his legs around, because the last time he did that (yesterday), Iwa-chan ended up kicking him back nastily and he had a ugly bruise on his right leg and he had to explain to his teammates that he was so not fooling around with anyone and that it wasn't a hickey at all, don't they know how proper hickeys look like, plus why would he let anyone bite him on his legs, that's so weird.  
  
"…What is it?" Iwa-chan ends up asking after ten more minutes, which is undoubtedly a new record on how fast Iwa-chan caves in after some intense staring and off-key humming.  
  
"I'm going to say something 'stupid', though?" Oikawa makes sure to use exaggerated air-quotes, because it's not stupid at all. He grins at the way Iwa-chan rolls her eyes, but she's obviously fond of him, or else she would have ditched him and refused to be his friend for more than ten years now.  
  
"You always do," Iwa-chan allows generously, tucking the stray hair again, the constant action irritating her slightly, with the way that her eyes twitch when she does it. "But you won't stop that god-awful humming until you say your piece, so."  
  
"It would have been so unfair if I've also been gifted with the talent of singing."  
  
Iwa-chan has mastered the art of saying things with the flattest tone possible. "What a way to look at it positively."  
  
And because of that, Oikawa has also mastered the art of reading between the lines. "So! I want you to… attend our practice tomorrow."  
  
"If this is your idea of a recruitment interview, you're not doing it very well."  
  
"R-Recruitment? Hahaha, Iwa-chan, what are you talking about?"  
  
"I don't want to be your manager."  
  
Oikawa slams his hands on the table in well-deserved outrage. Thankfully, Iwa-chan's feared by a lot of people, so practically nobody even comes close to their spot in the library. Also, thank goodness the library assistant manager is used to the two of them and their antics (and howls of pain from Oikawa, because Iwa-chan is unfairly strong).  
  
"Why nooooot."  
  
"I'd like to keep my couple of hours of peace per day."  
  
"Are you saying that you won't be at peace in a volleyball court?"  
  
"It's more about you being a pain in the ass, but yes."  
  
"You're so not cute," Oikawa complains, but it's not a very valid complaint because Iwa-chan doesn't really care about those things. She would be very cute and popular if she just acted a little gentler and girlier and maybe used some ribbon or two in her hair and maybe add a bit of lipstick and wow that's weird. He squints his eyes as he assesses Iwa-chan and her very gruff form and tries to imagine her as someone like… maybe most of the other girls in their class. He gulps in horror as his imagination is routed through Iwa-chan using eyeshadow to define her brows more and yeah, Iwa-chan's perfect like this, without inducing any horrifying visions in Oikawa's mind.  
  
"Why do you even need another manager? Don't you guys have two already?"  
  
"Eh, but they're going to make me captain soon and I want Iwa-chan there with me! It'll be more fun! Plus, it's not like you're with other clubs right? Don't worry about missing a couple of months—I'll talk to coach and it'll be easy-peasy~"  
  
"Pfft, you sound as though I already agreed." Iwa-chan's eyes are laughing at him. Oikawa kind of wants to tug at her hair and scatter it all over her face for that. "What would I even do there?"  
  
"Well, because Iwa-chan isn't listening, I said that I want her to be there with me as I become the team captain. Then, I want you to cheer me on whenever I hit an awesome serve."  
  
"So you want a cheerleader?"  
  
Oikawa ignores the incredulous tone and continues: "Then you'll need to give me my towel and my water bottle, then if someone texts me during my match, you can reply to it on my behalf?"  
  
"That sounds more like a slave?"  
  
"Then we can discuss the opponent and point out who has the ugliest face!"  
  
"You're a dumbass." Iwa-chan says that like, a hundred times per week. "And don't you have a coach for that?"  
  
"But coach doesn't like gossip!"  
  
"I don't either."  
  
"But, Iwa-chan!!! You'll also make my bento for me and secretly pack some milk bread for my dessert."  
  
"Huh… sounds like you need a maid."  
  
"Then during summer camp, we can explore the forests beside the grounds—"  
  
"—and look for UFO crash sites?"  
  
"I… I totally wasn't planning on suggesting that, but if Iwa-chan really wants to, then who am I to say no?"  
  
"So basically…" Iwa-chan hums thoughtfully – it's not off-key like his, damn it. "You want me to do the things I do for you for your whole team as well?"  
  
"Hey—I have special best friend rights, so I'm the only one who gets the shoulder massages!"  
  
"Shoulder massages are now on the list?"  
  
"But only for me!!!"  
  
"What a selfish guy."  
  
Iwa-chan starts arranging her notes and placing them back inside her backpack – not cutesy at all and very practical, just like her. She's eyeing him carefully though, as though waiting for him to say something extremely stupid.  
  
"Plus! You haven't cheered for me for a service ace yet."  
  
"I was there during your game last week."  
  
"You told me you had to go home early that day!!!" Oikawa cries as he watches Iwa-chan's cheeks flush as he caught her lie.  
  
"I… dropped by for a few minutes because you wouldn't shut up about it."  
  
"Well, okay, fine. But you haven't gone with me to a training camp yet—"  
  
"You're getting senile, shittykawa." Iwa-chan's insults need a lot of work. Actually, it's better that she doesn't work on them, because they're very harsh already. "What about that training camp when we were in sixth grade? You cried like a little girl and asked me to kill a goddamn spider for you?"  
  
"That doesn't count!"  
  
"I had to wake up in the middle of the night and bike to your camp. It totally counts."  
  
"I wasn't crying like a little girl, okay???"  
  
"Yeah. You were shrieking." Iwa-chan's smirking at him, but then she frowns as though she remembered something nasty. "And my mom was worried that I had started my rebellious age, but then she let it go when I said it was because of you."  
  
"I can't believe you blamed that on me!!!"  
  
"Was I supposed to blame anyone else?"  
  
"You could have blamed the spider, Iwa-chan!"  
  
"…pfft. You're impossible, Oikawa."  
  
But then she's smiling – whoa that's really weird. Not Iwa-chan's smile – well, okay, maybe a little bit, because she doesn't smile very often without looking like a demon of some sort. What's weird is that the sight of that rare smile makes Oikawa half-nauseous and half-giddy. It's weird.  
  
Anyway. Oikawa pouts as he tries his best puppy dog impression – most girls and even some guys in his class are total suckers for that, but never Iwa-chan, because she's a meanie.   
  
He thinks of other ways to convince Iwa-chan to be their manager – can't Iwa-chan see how awesome it would be for them to fight together in this stage? Due to being inseparable friends, even Iwa-chan knows who Ushiwaka is and she knows how badly Oikawa wants to win. Won't it be just splendid if Oikawa finally wins against Ushiwaka, while he's supported by his bestest friend? This will also be the best way to repay Iwa-chan for getting into Aobajousai that doesn't have a volleyball club for girls – just so they can be together still. (Of course, Iwa-chan never said anything like that, but Oikawa knows that and doesn't ever want her to feel any sort of regret about that choice.)  
  
Others have always told him that he's a difficult person to understand, but Iwa-chan doesn't have that problem, because her expression looks like she understood all those things that he was thinking about.  
  
Iwa-chan's smiling still, indulgent and so different from the usual frown that she favors.  
  
Oikawa wants to keep on seeing that every day, every year, forever.  
  
"…shouldn't you finish your problem set?"  
  
"Geez, Iwa-chan, are you my mom?"  
  
An eraser hits him in the middle of his eyes – a classic Iwa-chan response.  
  
"Aw, aw, aw. What will you do if you ruined my face???"  
  
"Celebrate, probably."  
  
"How mean!"  
  
"You should finish your problem set," Iwa-chan ignores his protests as usual. "Since captains need to set a good example, right?"  
  
"Uwaaaaa—is Iwa-chan agreeing??? Is this for real?????"  
  
"…finish that problem set, trashykawa."  
  
"Yes, ma'am!!!"  
  
(Oikawa ends up finishing the problem set in record time. He pesters Iwa-chan for a treat for his hard work and gets a bop on the head for his effort. Nevertheless, when they walk back home, Iwa-chan buys them a bag of snacks that contain his favorite milk bread. Iwa-chan is really the best. She's going to be the best manager ever.)  
  
•••  
  
Iwa-chan is such a bad manager.  
  
Oikawa's trying that new life principle thing about not regretting anything – but it's so hard!!!   
  
He's sorely regretting his decision to pester Iwa-chan to become their manager, because now, Iwa-chan is surrounded by rowdy teenage boys who all adore her – Oikawa's own fangirls love her – and what's happening to the world??? – this is all the fault of Iwa-chan wearing a looser version of the Aobajousai jersey while tying the longer parts of her hair in adorable pigtails (suggested playfully by Oikawa, but he didn't think Iwa-chan would actually do it, nor did he think that it will look cute in anyone else's eyes).   
  
Oikawa's pouting and fuming on the edge of bench, glaring at Kindaichi who's blushing like an idiot while around Iwa-chan and why is this even happening??? All Oikawa wanted was for Iwa-chan to be all cute and adorable (but not to anyone else's eyes!!!) while giving him shoulder massages and cheering for him, is that too much to ask???  
  
…Apparently, it is.  
  
So Oikawa huffs and puffs again.  
  
"What's this tantrum about now?"  
  
"It's not a tantrum."  
  
"It totally is." Iwa-chan doesn't sound impressed at all, even if he managed to destroy their opponents from the practice match. Ten service aces in one game—and no cheering from Iwa-chan. Woe is his life. "Is this because I didn't wear that cheerleader outfit you borrowed from the dance club? Because that's way stupid, even for you, dumbasskawa."  
  
"It's not just that!!!"  
  
Iwa-chan must take pity on him, because she actually presses a cool bottle to his forehead. It's an honor, because Iwa-chan hates handing players their water bottles; in her words, if they can practice spokes without puking for three straight hours, they can summon energy to reach for their own goddamn bottles. In retrospect, that lecture must have been the moment the entire Aobajousai Volleyball Club fell in love with her and her harsh words. Soooo unfair.  
  
"Your landing after last serve didn't look so good," Iwa-chan offers after another minute. "We can go to the clinic tomorrow to get your knee looked at."  
  
"Is Iwa-chan going to nurse me to health?"  
  
"I'll only do so if you're on the verge of death."  
  
"Is that a promise, Iwa-chan?"  
  
"Why, want me to beat you half-dead right now?"  
  
"Scary, scary!" Oikawa knows that Iwa-chan can manage that – especially since there's a bench that they're sitting on and a crate full of volleyballs nearby. "But yeah – let's go to the clinic tomorrow, because Iwa-chan is a worrywart who'll probably not be able to sleep worrying about me."  
  
"Dumbass."  
  
Iwa-chan doesn't deny it.  
  
Oikawa knows that Iwa-chan worries about him a great deal, even if a good number of his injuries are because of her, one way or another.  
  
He's sweaty, but he slides closer to Iwa-chan and bumps their shoulders together. It's a good thing Iwa-chan has lived quite a wild childhood, so she's used to sweat and grime and doesn't shriek when a sweaty athlete comes close.  
  
"Let's go play Mario Kart later, ne?"  
  
"Did you even finish your homework already?"  
  
"Not yet!" Oikawa chirps, because there's no reason to lie to Iwa-chan. "So can you let me copy yours?"  
  
"Go die."  
  
"Thanks, Iwa-chan! You're the best!"  
  
"Dumbasskawa."  
  
"Hey!!!"  
  
(Oikawa ends up getting scolded by their coach for being too loud and disrupting practice, which is unfair, because he's only loud thanks to Iwa-chan hitting him square on his stomach after he makes a passing comment about Iwa-chan secretly being a caveman thanks to the rumor that she defeated some challengers on arm-wrestling—and the challengers were from the judo club. Iwa-chan's apologies are always great though, because she ends up letting Oikawa win two rounds of Mario Kart and even lets him pick a movie they could watch even though it's a school night and even lets him stay over at her room while telling her smiling-but-teary-eyed mother that nobody's going to elope anytime soon, will she stop crying, it's embarrassing.)  
  
•••  
  
"—Thank you, Iwaizumi-san."  
  
Oikawa turns so fast he almost gets a whiplash, alarms ringing by his ear as he spots their young and impressionable wing spiker Kunimi-chan shyly ducking his head as he accepts the towel that Iwa-chan throws at him. On one hand, Oikawa is glad that Iwa-chan is brutish enough to just toss a towel, so no fingers brushing whatsoever happened. On another hand, Oikawa wants to yell something about his teammates being so obviously enamored with the gruff and unlady-like Iwa-chan because shouldn't teenage boys be more about curvier girls that wear tight clothing and those who flutter their fake eyelashes shyly??? Why are they all finding Iwa-chan adorable instead???  
  
"You'll catch flies, dumbass." Oikawa sputters in surprise – which is admittedly hard to do, since Iwa-chan's reaching out to snap his mouth close. He can feel her callused fingers on his lips and it's hardly romantic at all, because he can smell ball polish and sweat on her hands and she's shorter than him, but not that much, but she's still standing on her tiptoes a little bit.  
  
"Also—your face looks stupider than usual. What's up?"  
  
"Tsk, tsk, no delicacy at all, Iwa-chan! What will they say???"  
  
"They'll agree with me that you look stupid."  
  
The sad thing is that she's probably correct. His team is very cheeky and doesn't hold back when insulting their captain when there are no matches going on. In his mind, they're just all jealous that he's really good friends with Iwa-chan.  
  
"They're allllll thinking that they're lucky to be on the same team as the cool and awesome Oikawa-san."  
  
"Nobody thinks of that, delusional dumbass."  
  
"So mean!"  
  
A hand roughly tugs him down to Iwa-chan's eye-level, and Oikawa only has a few seconds to squawk indignantly at the harsh treatment (nobody dares to roughhouse him, not even their coach!), before his entire face is practically scrubbed raw by the towel Iwa-chan's brandishing as a weapon.  
  
"I remembered," Iwa-chan nonchalantly informs him after a couple of rough strokes on his face (there's someone who piped up something that sounds suspiciously like 'disgusting married couple'—Watari-chan, probably), "that you wanted me to hand you towels."  
  
"Not like this, though! Can't you be more gentle, Iwa-chan?"  
  
He gets a punch to his stomach for his efforts.  
  
(Oikawa ends up being scolded again by their coach for causing a commotion in practice. It's totally unfair, because Iwa-chan started it by being all cute and helpful to others while not giving Oikawa any special treatment. Iwa-chan's awesome though, because she patiently waits for him to finish his after-after-after-practice session, while she finishes her homework so that he can copy it later. Also, during their routine walk back home, she even allows him to borrow a couple hundred yen so he can try that newly-released flavor of Pocky. Iwa-chan also lets him copy her homework after only five minutes of wheedling, so that's a plus. Iwa-chan's the best ever.)  
  
•••  
  
"Oi. You're planning on staying up late again, aren't you?"  
  
"Ahaha, I won't, I won't."  
  
"You're such a goddamn liar, you piece of shit."  
  
"Aw, is Iwa-chan that worried about me? You're even worse than my mom!"  
  
Iwa-chan's eyebrow twitching in anger is one of the cutest thing ever. Right up there with killer bunnies. She shouldn't be so tense and angry all the time, it might make her face stuck to such an ugly expression. "Wanna say that again?"  
  
"Ahaha, nope, nope, my perfectly pouty lips are sealed~❤"  
  
Iwa-chan exhales with a long-suffering sigh that Oikawa laughs at. Iwa-chan's such a worrywart even though she's harsher towards him than anyone else. Oikawa's loathe to think about what would have happened if they didn't meet, if they didn't become friends.   
  
He shakes his head to dispel the depressing thoughts because there's no point about worrying about those things when Iwa-chan's right there and glaring at him like he's worse than the dirt stuck at the bottom of her runners.  
  
Tobio-chan is standing in-between him and Ushiwaka-chan and he's going to crush both of them and Iwa-chan will be there to cheer for him. That's what's going to happen because that's what he had promised with Iwa-chan when they were in elementary school, when they were in middle school, every single day that he practices his serves and every single moment that he spends analyzing other teams' plays.  
  
"Finish up faster so we can go home, shittykawa."  
  
"Just a few more minutes!" Oikawa can't understand how quickly Iwa-chan changes her clothes and gets ready to go home. She doesn't even take time to re-comb her hair! "Unlike Iwa-chan, I have to keep up my appearances!"  
  
"Yeah, yeah, whatever you say, trashykawa."  
  
"You're abbreviating your insults again!"  
  
"Asskawa."  
  
"Hey!!!"  
  
"Let's just go—I'd like to actually get at least six hours of sleep tonight."  
  
…Oh.  
  
"Iwa-chan's going to stay over???"   
  
"No need to make such a big deal about it," Iwa-chan grumbles as she eyes the lump of eavesdroppers near the doorway—when will they get the hint that Iwa-chan knows how to treat a king differently, okay. "Someone needs to keep an eye on you and make sure you don't stay up too late then be useless tomorrow."  
  
"Like I'd ever be useless, Iwa-chan!"  
  
Iwa-chan simply raises an unplucked eyebrow at him and carefully doesn't bring up his unsightly outburst during their middle school.   
  
"Come on, you idiot." Iwa-chan's impatience shouldn't be so entertaining to watch, but it is and Oikawa dawdles for a more seconds to induce more reactions from her. Iwa-chan's perceptive though when it comes to him, so she rolls her eyes and jabs him with her pointy elbow for deliberately stalling. She drags him by the arm as she rejects his half-hearted offer to carry her bag for her. Just as they pass by their group of eavesdroppers, she calls out: "Good night, Hanamaki-san, Matsukawa-san."  
  
Oikawa tsks at them and waves cheerily goodbye, because while he's not above outright stalking when it comes to gathering information, he has never stooped low enough to be caught by the people he's spying on (except maybe for that one time he and Iwa-chan scaled Shiratorizawa Elementary School's gymnasium to spy on the then-just-rumored super-ace Ushiwaka-chan – though in his defense, that was totally Iwa-chan's fault, because she didn't kill the beetle that flew right on his forehead and had waited until it crawled into above his nose before she slapped it away). His nose throbs at the memory, because Iwa-chan's a brute through and through and doesn't have any qualms whatsoever about hurting him if she thinks it's for the best (unfortunately, she thinks it's for the best a lot of times).  
  
"Karasuno's superhuman quick strike is really something, huh."  
  
"Tobio-chan and shrimpy-chan are both so annoying."   
  
"Pfft, you don't really have the right to call someone else annoying."   
  
"But I feel like I can unravel their attack soon. I can feel it, Iwa-chan!!!"  
  
"Good for you," Iwa-chan hums as they start their long walk back to their neighboring houses. As usual, they walk close enough for their arms to brush by each other every so often, the early evening air cool against their skin. Oikawa doesn't smell any perfume wafting from Iwa-chan and he smiles at how constant she is, never changing ever since their childhood, unaffected by things like puberty.  
  
"Are you going to help me watch their match recordings?"  
  
Iwa-chan shakes her head, some stray locks escaping her lopsided pigtail. She looks less irritated with that recently, almost like she's resigned to a lifetime of obliging Oikawa's whims. "That's your forte, isn't it? I doubt that I can do the same analysis you're doing."  
  
"Nonsense, Iwa-chan!" Oikawa stomps his feet in protest. "Don't you remember our classmates saying that we're always in sync?"  
  
"Stop shitting me."  
  
"But it's true! They always said we had perfect trust in each other."  
  
"Ew, as if I want that with you."  
  
"Ho-hum, you're just in denial, Iwa-chan—aw, ow, I give, I give!!!"  
  
They spend the rest of their walk home talking about trivial stuff, recalling something that happened in their day, because it's now much easier since they're practically together the whole time. Iwa-chan's laughing at one of the things that Oikawa has commented about their art teacher when they finally arrive at Oikawa's house. Both of them wave at Iwa-chan's mom who apparently has arrived at the same time as them. Their parents are too used to the two of them spending a lot of time together despite their loud bickering, to the point that asking for permission to stay over has long ceased to be a requirement.  
  
Iwa-chan's arranges her shoes on the foyer, before sliding her socked feet into the house slippers with her name stitched to the side. They didn't explicitly talk about it, but they're planning to attend the same university together, so this is a scene that will continue long into their future. The thought makes Oikawa happy, even if he's mostly feeling anxious about his match tomorrow and taking down Tobio-chan.  
  
(Oikawa ends up sleeping just before midnight, despite his best attempts at being sneaky and coaxing Iwa-chan to fall asleep before him. Iwa-chan patiently hums through his monologues about the attacks their team can do to overcome Karasuno's weaker defense. Iwa-chan only hits him a couple of times, mostly in response to his musings about his tosses losing to Tobio-chan's, because he surely isn't a genius. Iwa-chan offers some ideas of how they can capitalize on their opponents' weaker receives and Oikawa muses about how it would have been so perfect if the two of them are on the same team, fighting together as the setter and spiker. Iwa-chan hits him again then, before telling him that it's time for bedtime since he's starting to mumble shit again. Iwa-chan sleeps beside him, practically locking him into place so that he won't sneak out of bed and proceed to stay awake to replay the match videos. Iwa-chan's really the best.)  
  
•••  
  
Oikawa wakes up to the sound of laughter and the heavenly smell of breakfast.  
  
He drags himself out of bed, uncaring that his shorts are nearly slipping past his hips and that his hair is probably sticking out in all directions. He's in the middle of yawning while wiping the stickiness on his face (he refuses to admit that it's drool) when he finally arrives at their kitchen and sees Iwa-chan and his mother chatting about "a very stupid boy" while busying themselves preparing a feast.   
  
There's a bento slowly being filled with yummy things on the counter beside Iwa-chan and it's almost a shame that Iwa-chan only consents to wearing cutely-designed aprons when she's prompted by either of their parents. It's so unfair, because the aprons were a gift from him!!!  
  
"Good—uwaaa—morning," he ends up mumbling, earning himself an affectionate giggle from his mother and a light slap to his arm from Iwa-chan.  
  
"Hajime-chan told me that you have a big match today, so we thought that it will be nice to treat you with your favorite meals."  
  
Oikawa laughs at Iwa-chan's indignant scowl at being called 'Hajime-chan', but she's not as brutish when she's around his mother, so she doesn't do much else aside from hitting Oikawa again. "Hajime-chan's so sweet, isn't she?"  
  
"Don't you Hajime-chan me, you gross idiot."  
  
"Stop teasing Hajime-chan, Tooru. She woke up really early today just for you!"  
  
"I always wake up early," Iwa-chan grouses but she already has this look again, like she's resigned to be the subject of teasing from two very happy-go-lucky people. "I have to do my morning laps."  
  
"I know, dear, Haruka-san's son from next door always choose the mornings to lounge by their porch."  
  
"Ew, isn't he like, twelve?"  
  
"They start early, Tooru. Didn't you start early too?"  
  
"I don't know what you're talking about, mom."  
  
"I'll kick that brat's ass." Iwa-chan promises darkly, fuming most likely because she didn't even catch the ogling that apparently happened so obviously that even Oikawa's mother has noticed.  
  
"He might like that, Iwa-chan~"  
  
"Oh, Hajime-chan, pardon my son's jealousy…"  
  
Iwa-chan rolls her eyes as she closes the lid on the bento that she has packed on Oikawa's alien-themed lunchbox. "He's just jealous I have better muscles than him."   
  
"There's that."  
  
"I'm not jealous of brute-like muscles!"  
  
If he must though, if like, there's a gun pressed on his forehead and he has to answer honestly, like really honestly, Oikawa might be forced to admit that he thinks that Iwa-chan's body is kind of cool, because she's not like other girls and a lot of other guys, because she's slim, but her muscles are well-defined, but not like scarily enough like those people he can see on those late-night wrestling shows. But then again, that's only if he really, really, really must admit things.   
  
"Stop loitering around and help get some of the dishes," Iwa-chan scolds him, pressing against him for a moment while she works all over the kitchen, busying herself with arranging the cutlery, looking so at ease with her movements even if she's the furthest person from the stereotype of femininity. Oikawa kind of wants his mornings to be like this forever, with steaming food and his favorite meals and Iwa-chan there acting like the perfect hybrid of best friend, mother and personal butler. It's awesome.  
  
Oikawa grins and feels invincible, like he always does whenever Iwa-chan makes him realize things. "I have a great feeling I'll be crushing Tobio-chan today."  
  
Iwa-chan only looks at him oddly for a brief second, before lightly hitting him on his right hipbone with a spatula.  
  
(Oikawa ends up making both of them ten minutes late to the pre-match team meeting. It's totally not his fault that he ran out of his favorite brand of hair gel and Iwa-chan had to run back to her house and grab her emergency supply before chucking it at his face. It's also not his fault that the gel hit him squarely on his forehead so he had to whine at Iwa-chan to rub his forehead and kiss it to make it better, much to the delight of his mom and dad—who even gave him a thumbs-up for that. It's also so not his fault that Iwa-chan doesn't even think about what will happen to the hearts of everyone at the Aobajousai Volleyball Club when she arrives hand-in-hand with the Oikawa that she's basically dragging to move faster, so not very much his fault that Iwa-chan doesn't really care if she's wearing her own loose jersey or if she's wearing Oikawa's spare, the number 1 almost like a brand on her back as the rest of the team alternates between snickering and sighing heartbrokenly. Oikawa just thinks that it's the best reward he can ask for, aside from getting a chance to finally knock down Ushiwaka-chan from his rusty throne, so he goes ahead and wins against Tobio-chan and Karasuno and their genius quick-strike. Of course, Iwa-chan chides him afterwards for bullying Tobio-chan, but she also calls him annoying and hugs him briefly as congratulations on their way back to the locker rooms, so it's not a bad day at all.)  
  
•••  
  
Aobajousai Private High School is a pretty prestigious and huge campus, with enough prestige and wealth to its name to invite other schools for practice matches. Despite having the luxury of not having to venture out to some place more than two hours' drive away, he's very excited for the last training camp he'll ever attend while at high school.  
  
Of course, Iwa-chan will tell him that he's just excited for a chance to try looking for UFO crash sites on the forest nearby the university they're visiting for a week-long training camp, but she's an awful non-believer who doesn't know what she's talking about.  
  
"Stop bouncing about, it's annoying," Iwa-chan bursts his bubble of excitement by thwacking him at the back of his head. "I sat beside you because you promised to behave, dumbass."  
  
"I'm always behaved, Iwa-chan."  
  
"Quit lying with that face—it's disgusting."  
  
"So mean!" He complains about his best friend's usual harsh words, but he's not insensitive enough to speak at his usual volume. Their sponsored bus is quite cold, blasting air-conditioned air at full force, lulling most of its passengers to sleep. Of course, it might be more because of the early hour (Iwa-chan had to bodily drag him out of his bed at three in the morning just so they could be on time for the awful call time of four-thirty). Now that he's more awake though, it's just not fair that Iwa-chan wants to rest instead of sight-seeing (not that there's a lot to see, given that they're still passing by the roads of the prefecture where they've lived their entire lives, and also that it's still fairly dark outside) or chatting.  
  
"I had to wake up earlier to pack your shit, asskawa. Give me some time to rest."  
  
He pouts, because nobody asked Iwa-chan to pack his stuff for him. Well, okay, so he did whine at Iwa-chan over their overlooking balconies that he can't concentrate on packing his stuff while watching the last episode of his favorite drama. And, he suspects that his mother has talked to her favorite Hajime-chan about helping their spoiled, sheltered, super-perfect son prepare for his first long trip away from home and his seemingly-endless supply of clothes, hair gel and milk bread.  
  
He's so not insensitive, no matter how much Iwa-chan chides him about being a fountain of bullshit, so he slinks down on the not-as-uncomfortable-as-he-feared bus seats and leans against Iwa-chan's warm, sturdy shoulder instead of the cold glass window to his right. Iwa-chan huffs at him, but doesn't really protest – it's awesome of him to save the entire two rows at the back for him and Iwa-chan, so that nobody will dare disturb them and snap pictures of their sleeping manager. It's a blessing that they conceded so easily, but that could be because even Iwa-chan backed that suggestion and they're all suckers for Iwa-chan's thick eyebrows, black hair and the freckles scattered on her collarbone that conveniently show up whenever she wears an extra-loose jersey (namely: his).  
  
He must have fallen asleep to the thoughts of Iwa-chan obliviously charming the hell out of his team of teenage idiots, because the next thing he knows, he feels the pillow underneath his face rumble a little bit, before the tell-tale sound of an artificial camera shutter snaps him into consciousness. He blinks the sleep away from his eyes slowly, rubbing at them while he observes Iwa-chan fiddle with her phone with some redness on her cheeks.  
  
"Here's the evidence of your drooling face, shittykawa," Iwa-chan practically shoves her phone's screen to his face and he swallows down his protests about it being photo-shopped, not only because he can still feel some strange stickiness on his left cheek, but primarily due to the way Iwa-chan looks so gentle and curious with her face pinked and brightened by the seven-o'clock sun.  
  
Instead, he says: "Drool isn't enough to lessen the appeal of this mighty Oikawa-san~"  
  
"Delusional idiot."  
  
"Ho-hum, Iwa-chan's just blind to my charm!"  
  
"I'd really rather be blind instead of see this so-called charm of yours," Iwa-chan grouses out, but there's a distinct lack of hatred and an exponential increase in fond affection. Oikawa entertains the thought that he's actually still dreaming and Iwa-chan will come drag him with ice-cold hands by his legs to effectively get him out of bed in time for their training camp. But then again, if he's dreaming of Iwa-chan, he probably would have used that opportunity to change her dialogue to something sweeter and gentler, as well as removed all insults to his person. So, this isn't a dream, probably.  
  
"…you're creeping me out, trashykawa."  
  
"Ahahaha, you're sweet as usual, Iwa-chan!" Oikawa claims instead, focusing on having his best friend with him for this week-long training camp, for having her beside him on this awfully long drive so they can camp out in a university surrounded by forests. They might have eventually lost their ticket to go to Nationals during Inter High, but he has high hopes for the upcoming Spring High. Invincibility is cursing through his veins and he thinks it's mostly due to the constant presence beside him.   
  
Iwa-chan's really the best.   
  
(Oikawa ends up getting teased by his disrespectful teammates who are just so jealous that their captain bagged a room with a balcony that also happens to beside the room assigned for Iwa-chan. There are some catcalls about the two of them on their honeymoon, but a glare from Iwa-chan shut them up so quickly that Oikawa didn't even have time to retort that he's not desperate enough to take Iwa-chan to such a shabby place for their honeymoon. He eventually relates that thought to Iwa-chan while they're airing out the futons they'll be using for the week, and he gets a water bottle chucked to his face as a response. Despite the harsh treatment, Oikawa laughs because Iwa-chan's blushing again and that's really one of the best things he can ever ask for. Also, he gets a shoulder massage from Iwa-chan with less than five minutes of prompting, so this training camp is off to a really good start, stories about the building they're staying on being haunted notwithstanding.)  
  
•••  
•••  
•••  
  
Contrary to what people (re: Iwa-chan and his mother) say, Oikawa Tooru isn't a person with many wants.  
  
Right now though, he wants, above all things, for the always-prompt, never-absent, very-responsible Iwa-chan to actually arrive for the upcoming practice match that has scouts buzzing about like flies and fans loudly cheering for their favorites. True, it's just a practice match that not-regular-managers can skip, but it's between their college and Shiratorizawa University, so the publicity it has generated is way larger than the actual scale of this unofficial match just before the qualifiers start in three weeks.  
  
Also, after their late night yesterday analyzing match videos and practicing serves like nobody's business, he's kind of excited to show off the things he has learned, not only to his fans, to the scouts, to the stoic-as-a-rock Ushiwaka, but most importantly, to the person who has been beside him, chiding him and hitting him and supporting him all these years.  
  
And wow, when you put it like that, isn't he just the same as everyone else then?  
  
Charmed by the brutish Iwaizumi Hajime who can't be bothered to apply make-up or to wear more flattering clothes, but is the very pinnacle of responsibility that she singlehandedly manages the hurricane of messiness and childishness that is Oikawa Tooru.   
  
"You okay, captain?" He hears one of his teammates ask and he nods numbly, eyes still scanning the crowd for his perpetually angry-looking best friend, personal manager and life partner. How can he be idiotic enough to only realize this now? He's been one of Iwa-chan's fans since the first day they met, and he's only now realizing how important she is on this stage of his life? What an idiot he must have been.  
  
"…You never learn, Oikawa." A voice different from his teammate's, but annoyingly more familiar, comes from his left and he woodenly turns around to acknowledge the so-called Super Ace who hasn't lost his smug look, despite tasting defeat from Tobio-chan and his little weapon. "You shouldn't have joined this weaker team, just because you wanted to stay with Iwaizumi Hajime."  
  
There are some scandalized gasps from the players surrounding them and their confrontation – because one, nobody dared bring up the relationship between the two for fear of Iwa-chan's forceful reactions and two, while it's true that colleges dedicated to studying don't usually yield athletic members, how dare he. Also, the way that Ushiwaka-chan says his piece without any sort of outright ill intent is annoying too.  
  
"Fufufu, I'll knock you off your throne, Ushiwaka-chan." He ignores the other's words and instead delivers his promise of victory, rolling his eyes when Ushiwaka frowns at him like the concept of him being defeated is too outlandish to consider. Well, that's just fine—he's going to win against Ushiwaka and it doesn't matter if this is just a practice match or that Iwa-chan is still not here, what's going on, but he's going to win.  
  
He must have zoned out after that, focusing on the feeling of the ball against his fingertips and his palms as he lands a couple of service aces that he keeps on aiming on the first-year that they've brought in for the match. Nobody has ever claimed that he's above bullying others with the power of his serves and Iwa-chan had approved of this strategy when they were discussing this last night—  
  
He thinks that he's doing better than any match he's ever played, judging from the begrudging awe that's swimming in Ushiwaka-chan's eyes, from the squeals of his fangirls, from the approving looks from the pro scouts, from the excited grins of his teammates. Despite that, despite keeping Shiratorizawa on its toes as they prepare to bring the tumultuous first set to a close, he doesn't feel exhilarated at all. All he feels instead is his thirst to claw off the conceited look on Ushiwaka-chan's face and his anger at the other's words that's judging his choices of staying together with Iwa-chan as though it's wrong.  
  
He's fairly used to a life of being praised and being insulted, because his prominence brings certain surety that he'll be the subject of conversations, talks that range between praising him and finding flaws to poke at. He's also the childhood friend of the harshest person ever, so he's long learned to increase his immunity against insults and criticisms. Practically nobody has ever dared to insult Iwa-chan though, because despite her being the exact opposite of a perfect girl, she manages to subvert and exceed all expectations of what can be considered as an outstanding person. Nobody has dared to imply that Iwa-chan's wrong – except for him when he's trying to tease Iwa-chan back – so how dare Ushiwaka-chan say those words? How dare he—  
  
The whistle for the time-out takes him by surprise, even more so because their libero is dragging him back to the bench for and asking him to calm down, he's good, they'll win the set, they have the advantage and they're at set-point, but he should stop looking like a crazed person, it's not like him at all—did this person even hear what Ushiwaka has implied about Iwa-chan? How dare he—  
  
"…ha, you look like you're thinking about something stupid again, shittykawa."  
  
"Iwa-chan!!!" He snaps out of his reverie and stands up so fast that he feels his legs protest weakly at the strain. Her voice is so familiar to him, much like breathing, and he doesn't even need to see her face to know that it's her who had just arrived, probably ran to arrive here, judging from her slightly labored breathing.  
  
"You're at set-point, so don't do anything stupider than usual," Iwa-chan advises, placing her hands on her hips and scowling down at him, even though he's the taller one. The rest of the team are subtly giving them space, sighing collectively in relief as his personal manager and handler has finally arrived in order to snap their captain out of his crazed trance.  
  
Seeing Iwa-chan in front of him – hair uncombed and slightly sticking out in all directions, probably from her habit of messing with her hair whenever she's especially frustrated, so her final exam must have been really grueling – loose shirt practically hanging off her shoulder and showing her collarbone again, despite his protests that it distracts the team otherwise – voice gruff but steady and comforting as they say words that insult him and support him simultaneously – is enough to snap him out of his overzealous mantra of defeating Ushiwaka, but he has never guaranteed any stop to his so-called stupidities.  
  
"Iwa-chan," he says very seriously as he grabs her by her slightly sweaty shoulders with his very sweaty palms, just as the whistle to end the time-out pierces through the sizable crowd gathered to watch the nth showdown between Oikawa and Ushiwaka, "we'll win this and after we win, I'll tell you something veryyyy important, so don't dare leave, okay."  
  
There's someone clapping from somewhere on his back as his teammates call out to him to stop being lovey-dovey in front of an audience, they're not jealous at all, damn it.  
  
Oikawa grins as he walks back to the court, not needing Iwa-chan's verbal response to know that she'll stay to watch until the end of the match, today, tomorrow, forever.  
  
Iwa-chan laughs at him though and he has to turn back, because Iwa-chan's gentle laughter had successfully earned its righteous place as one of the Seven Mysteries of Aobajousai Private High School and is a sight and sound to behold.  
  
"You'll tell me about that 'very important thing' no matter what happens." Iwa-chan's laughter has subsided, but she's smiling her rare smile and Oikawa feels invincible right now, like he can take on the entire world. "That's how it works between us, right?"  
  
Oikawa releases a laugh of his own as he walks towards the service line.   
  
"Fufufu, you're right, Iwa-chan."  
  
And then he serves the best service ace of his lifetime.  
  
(In the end, Oikawa's team loses, three sets to two, but Iwa-chan wipes his tears of frustration with her callused fingers, all the while chiding him of never outgrowing his crybaby tendencies. Ushiwaka-chan might have won the match, but Oikawa feels like he has won the world, so there.)  
  
•••  
•••  
•••  
  
Also, because he's a man of his word—  
  
"Iwa-chan, I—"  
  
"I love you, dumbass Oikawa."  
  
"!!! Hey!!! I was the one who's supposed to confess?! Stop stealing my lines, Iwa-chan, that's so cruel of you!"  
  
"Don't worry, I don't plan on repeating those words ever again."  
  
"Wait—that's just stingy!"  
  
"Stop yelling words to my ear, dumbasskawa."  
  
"Then, then, will you be my manager for life?"  
  
"You should improve on your shitty recruitment skills."  
  
"But this isn't—Iwa-chan, I want you to manage my life with lots of love~☆"  
  
"You're so gross."  
  
"But you love me anyway!"  
  
"I must have bumped my head against my desk too hard…"  
  
"Don't say that, Iwa-chan! And hey, you know that I love you, right? Like, truly, seriously?"  
  
"Dumbass. I've known since we were six."  
  
"Ew, I so didn't love you back then. You were scary."  
  
"And you were such a little girl, but do you see me complaining."  
  
"I do see you complain though? Like a lot?"  
  
"But I'm still allowing you to do shit, aren't I?"  
  
"Are you sure you really like me, Iwa-chan? I know that you've hugged me and all and even kissed me earlier, but somehow I really can't feel the love…"  
  
"I'll make you feel some other things, trashykawa."  
  
"Really?!"  
  
"Yeah. Like lots of pain."  
  
"If I die right now, they only have you as the suspect! Don't throw away your future for my sake, Iwa-chan!"  
  
"Che, as if I'll do anything for your sake."  
  
But they both grin at each other since they both know that's a lie.  
  
And that's just how things work between them.  
  
Contrary to what people say, Oikawa Tooru isn't a person with many wants.  
  
After all, how can he want much else if he already has Iwa-chan with him?  
  
••• **end** ;  
  



End file.
